<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Scars of Death by LoganExeHasStoppedWorking</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28903113">Scars of Death</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/LoganExeHasStoppedWorking/pseuds/LoganExeHasStoppedWorking'>LoganExeHasStoppedWorking</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>PotU AU [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Newsies (1992), Newsies - All Media Types, Newsies!: the Musical - Fierstein/Menken, Percy Jackson and the Olympians &amp; Related Fandoms - All Media Types</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Gods &amp; Goddesses, Bad Decisions, Camp Half-Blood (Percy Jackson), Developing Friendships, Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff, Gen, Heavy Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Character Death, M/M, Mentioned Crutchie (Newsies), Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Redemption, Sequel</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 10:35:06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>18,611</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28903113</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/LoganExeHasStoppedWorking/pseuds/LoganExeHasStoppedWorking</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>A sequel to the fic "The Prince of the Underworld"!</p><p>Jack's guilt quickly catches up to him, and he tries to prove how far he's willing to go to make up for his actions. Meanwhile, Davey begins questioning how much longer he's willing to protect the son of Hades.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>David Jacobs &amp; Katherine Plumber Pulitzer, David Jacobs &amp; Sarah Jacobs, David Jacobs/Jack Kelly, Minor or Background Relationship(s), Morris Delancey &amp; Jack Kelly, Racetrack Higgins &amp; Jack Kelly, Sarah Jacobs/Darcy Reid, Spot Conlon/Racetrack Higgins</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>PotU AU [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2152911</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>17</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Prologue (Four Years Ago)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>FELLAS FELLS!! WE'RE DOING A SEQUEL UP IN HERE!</p><p>Took me long enough, right? It took me a while to actually come up with a story I was satisfied with and character arcs I liked (and I've been writing other stuff too, so... yeah). But I finally wrote it! The sequel to one of my fave fics I've written!</p><p>I won't keep ya'll too long, so without further ado, ENJOY!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>A darkness encased the camp.</p><p>Gray clouds that covered the moon to the point there was hardly any light that showed upon the enclosed are. A breeze rustled the leaves and gentle sprinkles of rain fell on the land.</p><p>The whole thing had an almost ominous feel to it. Which seemed fitting considering the events that had taken place as of recently.</p><p>There had been plenty of odd occurrences that had taken place in the last month or so, and it hadn’t gone unnoticed.</p><p>Shadows were moving on their own. The temperature would randomly drop at the oddest of times. The ground shook as if there was an earthquake approaching. Not to mention, there was a strange scent that was going around. It wasn’t one that people could quite put their finger on. But one could say it smelled of death…</p><p>Even so, there were a few occurrences that went more under the radar. When weeds and roots would grow out of control, the Demeter and Dionysus children would argue wondering who was messing with the plants. Plants would wither or look completely destroyed after camp activities, and the Nemesis and Ares children were usually blamed for being too rough or reckless.</p><p>But there was one person who knew exactly what was happening. The same boy who had gotten a note snuck into his sleeping bag in the Hermes cabin. The same boy who was out after hours now and travelling deep into the forest to where the note had said to be at exactly midnight.</p><p>The boy finally reached his destination. He stopped by a large rock that was near a small lake that seemed to be completely deserted of any nymphs or fish or any life at all.</p><p>He ran a hand through his dark, wet hair and sighed. </p><p>He knew this had to be a prank. He hoped to Zeus it was a prank because if it wasn’t… if people knew who his godly parents really were… </p><p>Who knew what kind of trouble he could get in. </p><p>He wasn’t exactly ready for the secret to be out yet. Who knew what kind of attitude his friends would have towards him being the son of one of the big three. </p><p>There were so many stories of children of Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades being outcast at camp for their parentage and sometimes even living out lives that were short and sad.</p><p>He was hoping to at least ride out being unclaimed until his father claimed him. Which should’ve been any day now… </p><p>A soft rustling came from nearby. The boy whipped around to face where the noise was coming from. </p><p>“Calm down, Jack. We ain’t gonna bite,” a familiar voice said.</p><p>Jack let out a sigh. “Oh, it’s you two…” He crossed his arms but remained defensive. “I knew this was some stupid prank!” He faced the two taller boys and gave them a look of annoyance. “So, what was yer plan, huh? Yous gonna lure me out into the woods with some stupid note and what? Beat me up or somethin’?”</p><p>The older of the brothers let out a puff of air through the nose. “What? No. If we was gonna hurt ya, it’d be funnier to do it in front of everyone else. Seems kinda pathetic to do it out here where no one can see how stupid you’d look.”</p><p>“Cut the crap, Oscar,” Jack said. “Ya wanna tell me what this is?” He pulled the note from the pocket of his shorts.  “<em> ‘I know who you are.’ </em> You go around leavin’ this in everyone’s bed hopin’ to get a reaction?”</p><p>“Got one, didn’t we?” He said with a smirk. </p><p>“Yeah,” the other chimed in. “And by you bein’ here, we’re probably right about you bein’ the son of Hades-”</p><p>Oscar flicked his brother's head. “I told you I’d do the talkin’, Morris. Shut up.”</p><p>Jack felt his heart almost stop. He gave his best expressionless face he could. He laughed. “Ha! Son of Hades? That’s a laugh fellas, but if we’re done screwin’ around here-”</p><p>“How are you doing it though?” Oscar asked, shoving past the other. “I know it’s one of the big three, but… your powers are so strong for someone so young. It’s like you ain’t even trying.”</p><p>“I don’t know what you’re talkin’ about,” Jack replied. “I’m just as confused as everyone else is. Not even Chiron knows what’s happening ‘round here.” He turned to leave. “If you got a problem talk to him. Don’t be messin’ with the other campers. Like I said, I’m gonna head to get some shut eye. You two keep bein’ creeps, I guess.”</p><p>He took a few steps away from them, but was grabbed by the shoulder and forcibly turned around. Oscar stared him in the eyes. Jack couldn’t help but notice the scar on the left side of his face from the last quest he had been on.</p><p>His expression was unreadable. “You smell of death, Jack. Sooner or later everyone’s gonna find out, and then what? What are you gonna do when good ol’ Racer, Kath, and that crip find out about it? They’ll be scared of what you are.”</p><p>Jack balled his hands into fists. He pulled himself away from the other. “Screw you, Crutchie of all people wouldn’t care. He’s my brother. Even if I <em> was </em> the son of some god of dead people, he wouldn’t care.”</p><p>“Oh come on,” Morris said. “It don’t matter. He’d turn on you in an instant if he had to. That’s how people can be sometimes.”</p><p>Oscar crossed his arms and shrugged. “Anyway, shouldn’t your dad have claimed you by now?” He continued and leaned on the boulder nearby. “Sure is takin’ his sweet time.”</p><p>Jack looked down. </p><p>Oscar was right in that sense. Most demigods were thirteen when they got claimed. All his friends were claimed at that point, and now here Jack was. He was fifteen and still unclaimed. He had to figure out who his godly parent was on his own to the point his powers were going haywire.</p><p>He didn’t like to think about it too much. It made him feel stupid for wanting someone like an actual <em> god </em> to care about him. Or at least take a second to acknowledge his existence…</p><p>Hades was going to have to claim him eventually, right. He brought him into this world. He should care about what was going on with his possibly only child… right?</p><p>Jack shook the negative thoughts from his head and scoffed. He moved his hair from his face, which was now all wet from the drizzling rain. “Where’s your mommy? Sure is takin’ her sweet time to come for a visit, ain’t she?”</p><p>That wiped the smug expression from Oscar’s face. “Listen, Jackie Boy, don’t shoot the messenger. We got someone who wants to meet ya. He’s real interested in you and wants to know you a little better.”</p><p>Jack feigned a look of interest. “Oh wow, another little friend of yours? Oh gee, I’d love to meet him!”</p><p>The older boy was not entertained. “We’re just trying to help you before you end up like all those other washed up unclaimed demigods! Don’t you want to be someone?” He took in a shaky breath. “Don’t you want to be a part of something bigger than yourself? Something that’ll show those stupid gods that you don’t need ‘em? Something… that’ll take them down”</p><p>Jack bit the nail on his thumb. He hummed. “Listen, I don’t like the gods just as much as the next guy, but what the hell are we gonna do about it? They control literally everything. Ain’t nothin’ a couple demigods like us can do ‘bout it.”</p><p>“Well, not Morris and I,” Oscar continued. “We can’t do anything on our own. But if we had a child of the big three and a titan on our side…”</p><p>Jack couldn’t help but laugh. “A titan! Ha! Oscar, I always knew you had a few loose screws but not that many! The titans are either imprisoned or gone for good. ‘Sides, I never said I was the son of Hades, so good luck with whatever the hell you’re talkin’ about!”</p><p>He shook his head with a smile and began walking. </p><p>“But we do know a titan!” Morris blurted out. “Kronos! He’s the one who told us about you!”</p><p>Jack stopped in his tracks. He turned only his head. He wasn’t quite sure what to say or do. </p><p>These two idiots were bluffing. They couldn’t be telling the truth. Or could they?</p><p>As if on cue, Oscar went over and slapped the back of his brother’s head. “Dammit Morris! Way to ruin my cool, mysterious vibe I had goin’. Ugh!” </p><p>“Well, did you want him to leave! I had to tell him or he wouldn’t help!”</p><p>Jack fully turned towards them now. “S-so you twos are bein’ serious? You know Kronos? King of the titans Kronos?”</p><p>“There ain’t any other titan named that, is there?” Oscar asked. He ran a hand through his own wet hair. “So, know that you know, you want in?”</p><p>Jack bit the inside of his cheek. </p><p>He couldn’t help these two. He hated them. They would always mess with him and the other campers to the point they considered them the biggest jerks at camp.</p><p>But then again, if they were for real… he’d be a force to be messed with. His dad would have to notice him then! He’d have to show him some kind of attention. Everyone would know who he was. Whether it was in a negative or positive light.</p><p>A world without the gods didn’t seem so bad either. No one else would have to go through feeling the same insecurities or painful nights of wondering whether they were good enough ever again. Maybe it was a good thing… </p><p>But also… it was the Delancey brothers. They sucked. What kind of person would that make Jack if he stooped to their level? That’d be crazy. And what if his dad was just late in claiming him? </p><p>Although Jack couldn’t come up with a reason for why he was two years late, there had to be a reason, right? Right…?</p><p>Jack mentally slapped himself for even considering what these two were saying.</p><p>“No,” Jack responded. “Heck no. Never. And I’ll stand by that, thank you very much. I ain’t like you.”</p><p>Oscar had a small smirk. He looked to his brother then up at the sky. “It’s already pretty late, and we’re getting pretty wet. Maybe we should be heading back to camp.” He grabbed Morris’s arm and began heading back toward the cabins. He stopped one more time. “Jack Kelly.”</p><p>“Hm?”</p><p>“Think it over. I’ll leave the offer open in case you change yer mind. I’ll leave it up to you, son of Hades.” With that, he disappeared with his brother.</p><p>Jack let out a breath. He began making his way back as well, his clothes soaked from the rain.</p><p>“Yeah right,” he muttered to himself. “Like I’d ever stoop to that level.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Jack</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>A year after the events of the “incident”, Jack tries to adjust to his new life with his parents.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Chapter 2!!! I'm gonna try to upload every week (maybe twice if the chapters are shorter), so here's the next chapter a week later!<br/>This chapter takes place a year after the events of the first story's epilogue, so the characters are a bit older and there are a few changes going on here.</p><p>Anyway, enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Jack was awoken by the sound of a distant scream. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He didn’t react as most people would when being woken up by someone screaming, considering this was something he would hear on almost a daily basis. He slowly opened his eyes and sat up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His hair was a bird’s nest with knots everywhere and sticking out in all directions. He groaned as he threw his bedsheet to the side and let his feet dangle off the side of his bed. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He sighed as he scratched the back of his head. “I guess that’s the wake up call,” he murmured to himself.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He groggily stood up and dragged his feet across the floor to get dressed for the day. He rummaged through his dresser and pulled out a gray hoodie that was probably a size or two too big for him. He threw on a dark blue t-shirt and a pair of jeans. He didn’t do too much to fix up his long black hair. He just tied it into a ponytail and left it as it. He slipped on a pair of sneakers and headed out the door. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He shut the door behind him and headed down the long empty hallways. The sound of his footsteps echoed through the air as he headed downstairs and through a few different rooms to meet his parents.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Most days he dreaded seeing his parents in the morning. He didn’t hate his parents or anything. On the contrary, he was grateful for them even wanting to see him after the stunt he tried to pull. Not many demigods even got to meet their godly parents, let alone live with them, so Jack knew he was more than fortunate to have this opportunity.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He just felt a bit awkward around them was all.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>After so much bitterness and resentment that he built up over the years, it felt weird to have them treat him as just… a person. Granted, they had their own things to do and weren’t around to pay him much attention during the day (At least, Jack thought it was day… time was an odd concept down here since there was no sun or moon to tell him what time of day it was), but they didn’t treat him badly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They greeted him when they saw him. They tried helping him get his powers under control. They were fine.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It just made Jack feel awkward knowing that he tried to… well, get rid of them. He hadn’t gotten over that incident was all.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Heck, he still had nightmares about it. He could still hear the deep voice of the titan king in the back of his mind. See those golden eyes… </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack tried to push that out of his mind. He didn’t want to get this worked up this early. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was too tired to think about this kind of stuff right now.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Just stop it</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he told himself. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Stop being stupid. Cut the crap and be an adult.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>He noticed the throne room just up ahead and walked faster, hoping that maybe talking to someone would distract him from his thoughts.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He slowed his pace as he entered the gigantic room. It was probably one of the most beautiful and extravagant rooms in Hades’s palace. The walls had gems and gold seemingly melded inside them. Bouquets of lavender flowers decorated the walls that contrasted the glittering black obsidian. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>At the end of the room sat two thrones. One was made of black onyx with skulls decorating it while the other was white with vines that had small pink flowers wrapped around it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>In the latter, sat a tall dark-skinned woman with long, curly brown hair. She wore a light green dress that was ankle length and had sleeves that went up to her elbows. She was reading a book that Jack couldn’t quite see the title of.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He walked closer, his footsteps muffled now by the dark red carpet. He stopped when he reached the thrones.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack cleared his throat and tried his best to stand up as straight as he could. “Mother,” he addressed her as formally as he could. He didn’t have to, but it felt weird not to. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The goddess looked up from her book and smiled. She closed her book. “Hello, Francis,” she said in a gentle voice. “How did you sleep?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fine,” he said. He noticed his voice came out scratchy. He cleared his throat again. “It was fine.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She stood up with a hint of concern on her face. “Are you feeling okay? It sounds like you’re getting a bit sick.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m fine,” Jack said. “I just woke up, so I’m just tired.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Persephone didn’t seem satisfied with that answer. “Are you sure? You’ve been ‘tired’ a lot recently, and—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, I’m sure.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack felt a sudden freezing sensation come over him. Persephone hugged herself as though she felt it too. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She sighed. “Francis, what did we say about power in the house?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack took a deep breath. The cold slowly faded. “Not to…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s right. Unless I tell you it’s okay to annoy your father.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The hint of a smile appeared on his face. “Yeah, that too.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His mother put an arm around his shoulder. “There’s that smile.” She said. “Come on. Let’s go have breakfast in the garden. It’ll help you clear your mind of whatever you’re thinking.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack nodded. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>They walked through the halls in silence and made their way out back to the only piece of land in the Underworld that wasn’t all darkness and despair. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack had to admit it was an impressive garden. So many colorful flowers were all around them. Marble pillars, a bench, and a waterfall even. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>This was probably the best part about living down here. The garden reminded Jack of the living world. Plus, spending time with the goddess of spring wasn’t the worst thing in the world. Again, awkward? Sure. It did help that they had a similar sense of humor though, so it wasn’t all bad. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack sat at a small table next to the fountain while his mother went to get them breakfast. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He bounced his leg and bit his nail as he waited quietly. He didn’t have to wait long. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It wasn’t long before Persephone emerged from the kitchen with two bowls of cereal, their usual breakfast. She set one down in front of him and sat down across from him with the other. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He murmured a thanks and stared down at the table. A few hairs came loose and fell in front of his eyes. He blew them out of his face and pushed his cereal around the bowl for a while until he was snapped from his thoughts. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Francis, are you sure you’re feeling alright?” His mother asked again. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He let out a puff of air. “Yeah, I’m good. Just getting used to it down here is all…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She took a bite of her own breakfast and raised an eyebrow. “Is that all?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Mm-hm.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She gave him a knowing look. “Francis, if you need to talk about something…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He dug his nails into the table and looked down. “I don’t.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Not this again… </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He wasn’t sure why her and other people wanted to hear him talk about what happened. He didn’t even want to think about it, let alone tell others how about it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She reached out and touched his hand. “Honey, it’s been almost two years now.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t wanna talk about this.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You can’t just keep your emotions bottled up. If you need help, we can get you help.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I feel nothing. Forgot ‘bout it already.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Francis—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I said </span>
  <em>
    <span>I’m fine</span>
  </em>
  <span>!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He slammed his hand on the table and stood up. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>His head snapped up in time for him to see a few nearby plants shrivel up and begin wilting. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He brought his hands up to cover his mouth. Persephone turned to see what he was staring at. She glanced back at him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack lowered his hands. He took in a shaky breath. “I… I’m fine. I don’t want to talk right now. I just…” He slid back down in his chair. “I just need to think about something else right now.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He crossed arms. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was a moment of silence between the two. Persephone stood up and walked over to tend to the plants that Jack had ruined. While her back was turned, she spoke.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s almost spring,” she said gently. “Just one more week. Are you excited to go back to see your friends?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack took in a deep breath. “Yeah… Yeah, I am.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And that nice young man? David, I think his name was.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack felt his shoulders relax. “Yeah… Davey’s pretty great.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You two have fun together, don’t you?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A small smile formed on his face. “I guess we do.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Not too much fun I hope.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He could hear the smirk in her voice. A slight heat rose to his cheeks. “Ma!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She turned to him and laughed. “I’m joking! I’m joking!” She stood up and walked back over to him. “Mostly.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack let out a small chuckle. He rolled his eyes. “Yet not funny.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh really? I think I’m hilarious.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Only sometimes.” He shook his head with a smile. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>After a bit of back and forth, they sank back into a moment of silence. Thankfully, it wasn’t too awkward. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Persephone finished her breakfast and gazed at Jack, who had hardly touched his food. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack looked down at his lap and closed his eyes. He heard the sound of a chair moving. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Francis?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hm?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He opened his eyes to see that his mom had walked over to him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The goddess placed a hand on his shoulder. “Hey,” she said, “why don’t you take today for yourself? You’ve been kind of down lately, so maybe a bit of a break will be good for you. What do you say?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack looked up at her and shrugged. “I guess.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Persephone smiled sweetly. “Excellent! You can leave the garden when you’re ready then, dear. I’ll be busy fixing up a few things around the house.” She ruffled his hair as she walked past him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack turned to make sure she was gone for good. When he was sure, he stood up and carried his breakfast up to his room.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He set the bowl down on his nightstand and sat down on his bed. He reached under his bed to pull out his sketchbook. He opened it to a drawing that he’d been working on for way longer than he should have been. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He bounced his leg as he chewed on his pencil and stared down at his sketch. He let out a quiet hum as he sat there and stared at it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was trying to recreate the first picture he had ever drawn, which was of him and his parents. He thought it was an appropriate time for a redraw considering how he actually knew how to draw now and wasn’t just some five year old drawing stick figures.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He had the sketch drawn out already, he just needed to actually finish it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That was easier said than done though. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Every time he tried to continue with it he’d only draw a small piece, then get tired of it and shove it back under his bed. The same went for his other drawings. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was a vicious cycle of starting but never finishing them. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The same thing happened right now.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He drew a darker outline on one of the figure’s outfits then got tired of it. He sighed as he shoved the drawing under his bed for the hundredth time. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He laid back on his bed and stared up at the black ceiling. He crossed his arms and clicked his tongue. “Well then…” He muttered. “That’s that.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He stared up at the ceiling for a few minutes before deciding to sit up and take a few small bites of his cereal.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He swung his legs back and forth, trying to think what to do with his free time. There wasn’t much to do in the Underworld besides mess around with a few souls or go exploring places he hadn’t seen yet.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He sometimes liked to sneak out too. When his parents were busy, he’d sometimes go visit Medda and Spot, his foster family, or sneak around Camp Jupiter to see what was going on there. He never revealed himself to the campers though. Who knew what they’d say if they saw the prince of the Underworld roaming around in the shadows. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He did have a few moments where he popped in to see his boyfriend, but it wasn’t for too long since he had his responsibilities as praetor and all.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack considered going to pay those friends a visit, but he didn’t have the energy to shadow travel that far.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Then, an idea popped into his mind.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He had something he needed to finish. Something that he hadn’t quite gotten out of his system.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The son of Hades stood up and walked right out of his room. He shoved his hands in his pocket and headed out of Hades’s palace. He ran into Persephone, who naturally asked where he was off to. He just told her that he was going out for a walk and that he’d be back soon.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She just nodded and allowed him to leave.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack walked down a path that he was used to walking. It was a long pathway made of dark stones that were cracked and faded with age.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He closed his eyes and walked down the pathway.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He’d been down this road so many times that he knew the directions like the back of his hand. He wasn’t supposed to be going down this path. That’s what his father had told him, but he did this more times than he could count without getting caught so far.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was just lucky Hades and Persephone hadn’t found out about this yet or he’d be in big trouble. Huge trouble, in fact. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He didn’t have any luck finding him so far, but he had to keep trying. He'd have to find him one of these days. He just had to. He needed to see him at least one more time, even if it </span>
  <em>
    <span>was </span>
  </em>
  <span>just for Jack to see what had become of him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack came to a sudden halt.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He snapped his eyes open and stared up at the crossroads. A beat up old sign pointed down each of them with a different name. </span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Elysium.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>The Fields of Asphodel.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>The Fields of Punishment.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack took a moment to stare up at them. He let out a quiet hum as he continued straight down the path that read </span>
  <em>
    <span>Fields of Asphodel</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He didn’t want to think his friend could be in there, but he had already checked Elysium and came up with nothing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The son of Hades had a determined look on his face.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t worry, Crutchie,” he murmured. “I’m comin’ for ya.”</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Ha! You thought we were just gonna forget about Crutchie's death? Think again! We're getting straight into the angst fellas! Let's go!</p><p>Take it easy, guys, gals, and non-binary pals! See you next chapter!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Jack</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Jack tries to find an old friend, but it doesn't go exactly according to plan.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Okay so, just a side note, the chapters are gonna be titled by the character who's point of view it is (like Heroes of Olympus). So, expect more than just Jack or Davey's POV. That's gonna be fun :3</p>
<p>Anyway, enjoy this next chapter!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“Well, this is the place.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack stared out into the sea of darkness. A twinge of remorse filled his chest.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Thousands, possibly millions, of shades were gathered, aimlessly wandering the enclosed space. Standing just outside the Fields of Asphodel, it looked like a large, grassy field you’d see in maybe somewhere in Kansas. The only difference being that the grass here was black and looked as though it would collapse in on itself at any second.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was hard to see the soul’s faces from where he stood. Jack couldn’t quite make out any features or expressions on the pale figures. Some were just standing around while others seemed to be slowly wandering to find a place they’d never get to.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was honestly really depressing. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack cracked his knuckles. “Dear gods, Cruthie, I hope you ain’t in here.” He started into the fields. “That’d just be sad for both of us,” he muttered.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He entered the gloom and felt a shiver run down his spine.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As he walked through the fields, it was ominously quiet with only the sound of the grass crunching under his own feet. He walked up to the first shade he saw and examined it. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Even up close it was hard to make out features on the shade’s faces. It was like someone blurred out the entire face and paled their bodies. Then again, they were technically ghosts so… the pale part made sense.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack walked past the shade and continued deeper into the field. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>This is gonna be harder than I thought.</span>
  </em>
  <span> Jack bit the nail on his thumb as he walked. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Don’t help that they don’t remember anything.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He tried looking around at other shades that were nearby but couldn’t find who he was looking for. He didn’t expect to find Crutchie right away considering how many people died on a regular basis, so he kept searching.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A few times, Jack could’ve sworn he caught a shade or two staring at him. He brushed off the feeling though. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The souls that entered the Fields of Asphodel usually had to have their memories erased before entering, Jack knew their minds were practically empty. They were quite literally lost souls. Their heads were empty.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That thought made Jack’s stomach churn. He ignored that feeling as well and continued his search.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The deeper he went, the darker his surroundings grew. And the stronger the feelings of being watched grew.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He finally turned to look behind him but there was no one.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He licked his lips. “Stop being paranoid,” he told himself. “You’re freakin’ yourself out.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>After what seemed like hours of trying to identify what shades looked like, Jack found a spot to sit down and rest for a while. He crossed his legs and picked at the grass.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He was exhausted but refused to let his guard down enough to get too comfortable in these fields. He still had a feeling in the back of his mind that he was being watched.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack hummed to himself. “Where the hell could he have ended up? Fields of Punishment is out for sure… Not in Elysium... “ His leg bounced.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He tried to think. Think about how even if Crutchie was here… how would he even be able to identify him? He could’ve seen him that day and not even known it was him!</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack felt roots grow under where his hand was placed on the ground. He pulled them out and threw them to the side.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack stared into the distant darkness.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>This was such a familiar feeling to him. The numbness… the darkness… this wasn’t unfamiliar to him… it reminded him of…</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Son of Hades….</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack’s breath hitched in his throat. His back stiffened at the sound of the deep voice. He felt his eyes widen at the sound.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Son of Hades…</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The deep voice spoke again. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack jumped to his feet, his entire body shaking. His hands flew to his ears in an attempt to block out the familiar voice.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No… no, no no…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack’s eyes darted from one place to the next, trying to identify the disembodied voice.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>His breaths came out in short spurts.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>This wasn’t happening… This wasn’t happening! Not again!</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Before he could figure out what was happening, a hand grabbed his shoulder. It was cold and had a firm grasp to the point Jack could feel the nails through his sweater. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack spun around and came face to face with a shade. A shade with features he couldn’t quite make out. Jack sucked in a short breath.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“Son of Hades…” </span>
  </em>
  <span>The shade spoke in the voice that Jack had heard just now. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Release us…”</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“H-huh?” Was all Jack could get out. His eyes darted away from the shade that was holding him and noticed others that seemed to acknowledge his presence.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Without a second thought, Jack tore his arm away from the shade and sprinted away as fast as his legs could carry him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>His side began to ache from the short breaths he was taking, so he began slowing down to a normal walking speed. He looked back and noticed that the land he touched had roots and weeds growing wildly from the ground.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He walked backwards to try to see if he lost them but noticed that more shades were staring in his direction.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack’s whole body was shaking at this point. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>His breaths were short. He hugged himself and tried to steady his breathing, but he felt a hand grip his shoulder. He froze, a cold feeling traveling down his spine. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He slowly turned his head and found himself staring straight into a pair of golden eyes. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He sucked in a breath and pushed the shade away in a panic. The grip was strong though, and his sleeve was torn to a point it was almost detached from his sweater. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He blinked and stared at the surrounding figures. All of them were dark shadows with golden eyes. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack collapsed to his knees. He grabbed at his hair. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Don’t—</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He felt another hand grab at his arm. This time it was a more firm grasp than the others.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack’s whole body shook. He let out a scream and swung around, ready to kick whatever had a hold on his arm.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The hand let go. “Francis, calm down.” A familiar voice said sternly. “It’s just me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack took in the being in front of him and saw it was none other than the king of the Underworld himself. “D-Dad,” Jack stuttered, “how-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The god looked from the shades to the demigod. “We’re leaving,” he said simply.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But I-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Now,” he said in a more demanding tone.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack opened his mouth to protest, but Hades had already picked the demigod up in his arms and was fending off the shades. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The god was taller than most normal humans, so most of the shades were only as tall as his waist. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A few scratched at his body, but the god was able to kick them away. More began gathering, being snapped to attention by the commotion.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack could feel himself still shaking. He dug his hands into his father’s suit and held on as tight as he could. “I- Let me hel-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Hades said something, but it didn’t quite register in Jack’s brain.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He could still hear the deep voice lingering in his ears. Remembering the dark surroundings and the numbness he felt in that moment caused him to feel tears well up in his eyes.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He mentally slapped himself.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Stop that! </span>
  </em>
  <span>He scolded himself. </span>
  <em>
    <span>You’re not a little kid! Don’t act like it!</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He wiped his eyes dry. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It wasn’t too long before they were outside the Fields of Asphodel. When they were a good distance away, the god set him down. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack’s knees were weak but he managed to stay standing. He let out a shaky laugh. “So… you’re probably wonderin’ why I’m—”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I am.” There was a sharpness to his voice that Jack knew fairly well. It was his ‘you better explain yourself before I extend your punishment’ voice. The god of the dead raised an eyebrow expectantly and crossed his arms. “Out with it.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack hesitated. He could’ve made up a lie on the spot, but, unfortunately, his father had a talent of being able to see past even his smallest fibs. He really only had the option to come clean and tell him what he was doing.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He pulled on a section of hair that had come loose. “I was looking for Crutchie,” he mumbled. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Speak louder.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I was tryin’ to find my friend, Crutchie,” he practically screamed. “Okay? That’s it! I need to know what happened to him!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Hades said nothing. His body language remained as it was. His piercing dark eyes remained trained on the young demigod. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack searched his face for any kind of reaction but found nothing. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well,” Jack said, his body still slightly trembling, “say somethin’!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>No response.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Was he in there? I just- What did you do to him? I gotta know what happened! Is he okay?!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There was a moment of silence before the king spoke. “He’s fine, Francis.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack felt his breath catch in his throat. He stared up at his father. “C-can I see him? Please?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Hades sighed. He didn’t seem upset with Jack. In fact, he seemed more tired of this subject than anything. His body language had the same energy as a parent talking to their child about some insignificant issue they kept bringing up.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He’s fine,” Hades repeated. “Well, as fine as you can get when you’re dead.” He put a hand on Jack’s shoulder. More specifically, he touched the area Jack’s sweater had been torn.  He let out a sigh. “Listen to me, Francis. We’ve been over this already. You can’t just go wandering wherever you like. Since you’re also the son of a fertility goddess, there are certain parts of the Underworld you can’t enter. It-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah. Yeah, I get it. I’ve heard this all before,” Jack interrupted. He took a step back out of the other’s reach. “Don’t change the subject on me, Hades. Where is he?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He ran a hand through his black hair and rolled his eyes. “We’ve been over this as well. He’s dead. I’m not going to let you take him from the Underworld. It was his time. You need to let it be.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack’s fingers curled into a fist. “He was fourteen, Hades! In what sick world is that time for a kid to die!” He took a few steps closer and jabbed his finger at the god’s chest. “‘Sides, you’ve let other people outta here! That Orpheus guy. You let him walk outta here with his girlfriend.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And look how that turned out,” Hades said simply. “I’ve told you once, and I’ll tell you again. His life ended. I’m not allowing you to take him from my realm.” He lowered his voice to a more intimidating tone. “Do you understand me, son?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack let out a puff of air. He might’ve been stupid, but he wasn’t stupid enough to test how far he could push the god of the dead. “Yes…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Good.” The god turned to leave. “Oh, and Francis?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hm?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s not even counting the amount of times you’ve left to the mortal realm without permission and snuck into the other forbidden areas before.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack paled. He opened his mouth to say something but closed it, unsure of exactly to say.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There was a chuckle. “You’re a sneaky one, but nothing gets past me that easily.” With that, the god vanished.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack wasn’t exactly sure what to do at that point, so he chose the only thing he could think of. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He walked back to what he was supposed to call home and locked himself in his room the rest of the day, trying to get that shade attack out of his head.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He threw his sweater on a nearby chair and wrapped himself in his sheets, trying to block out the distant screaming of newly arrived souls. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack just needed to block the world out right now. He couldn’t handle anything right now.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He missed Crutchie. He missed Medda. He missed Spot. He missed his old life. A small, cozy apartment with people he had gotten to know his whole life definitely beat staying in a palace in the Underworld with people he hardly knew. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack closed his eyes and laid his head down. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He knew he should be grateful for this considering how many demigods didn’t even get to know who their godly parents were, but that didn’t stop his homesickness or discomfort he felt. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That just made him feel worse. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He was with his </span>
  <em>
    <span>real</span>
  </em>
  <span> family. He was supposed to be happy.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>So then… why wasn’t he?</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Aha, well that was a fun one to write. Is still suck at writing Hades like in the first story, but I think it's fine? I hope? I'm trying my best. Next chapter we're getting a POV from another character, so that should be fun!</p>
<p>Take it easy guys, gals, and non-binary pals! See ya next chapter!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Davey</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Davey and Sarah head home from Camp Jupiter.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Woo!! A Davey chapter!!! I love writing for Davey, so this is gonna be a good one (I hope)!</p>
<p>Hope y’all enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Davey jumped at the sudden noise.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Come on, Dave! Hurry your butt up! We’re going to miss the bus!” A voice called through the door to his room.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Davey smiled and shook his head as he zipped up his backpack. “Okay, okay, I’m coming.” He slung his backpack over his shoulders and opened the door.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>His sister stood there with a duffle bag in hand. She gave him a small smile. “Finally,” she said. “It took you long enough. I thought I was going to have to bust this door down.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sarah, please don’t,” he said.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarah stepped out of the way to let him exit his room. “I mean, now I don’t have to. But just know if you took any longer, I probably would have.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Davey closed the door behind him and chuckled. “Yeah, sure you would’ve,” he mumbled with a smile. He followed his sister out of the cohorts. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh yeah? Don’t put it past me Mr. Praetor. You may be big stuff here, but when we get home, you're just as irrelevant as the rest of us.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She pulled him close and ruffled his hair. “So that won’t stop me from damaging your property at home.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Davey pushed her away. He smoothed his hair down as they continued walking towards the camp’s exit. “Remind me to keep my stuff as far away from you as possible.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She chuckled. “Fair enough.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Their conversation ended there, and they walked in silence the rest of the way out Camp Jupiter’s borders. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Davey was walking at a bit of a quicker pace than usual. He had been waiting for this trip since last summer.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>After months of being back home, Davey was actually excited to get out of this place and back to New York. He had no problem with Camp Jupiter. The place was fine, but the problem was that he didn’t really have friends here. They were all at Camp Half Blood. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He had Sarah, of course, but now that he had the responsibility of praetor, he had so many new things to do. That took away a lot from their time together.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Now, with spring break coming up, hopefully they’d have more time together. And as an added bonus, their parents had allowed them to go to Camp Half Blood for the week. So, Davey was happy he’d get to spend some quality time with his friends and boyfriend. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Right now, they were going to head to their parents’ place and say their goodbyes before leaving tomorrow. The bus ride was only ten minutes from camp, so they would also be able to spend the afternoon with their parents before heading off. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So are you excited to see the Greeks?” Sarah asked, breaking the silence between them. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Of course,” Davey said. “I’ve been waiting all year for this trip. It’ll be great to get away for a little while.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah,” Sarah responded. “I miss hearing Spot’s commanding little voice around here. It’s gotten too quiet for my taste. And getting to see the others will be great too.” A smile formed on her face. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There was a bus already there when they arrived, so they climbed in and took two seats near the back. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I bet,” Davey said with a small smirk. He pulled his bag onto his lap. “You know that Darcy kid seems like he’s fun to hang out with.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarah shrugged. “Yeah, he’s pretty cool.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You two hung out a lot last summer. Are you going to hang out with him again?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She gave him a look. “Oh, shut up.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Davey held up his hands defensively. “Hey, don’t get mad at me! I’m just doing my job as the overprotective brother.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I already told you I just think he’s…” She wrung her hands. “He’s neat.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I bet he is. Just wait until I give him a talking to though—”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh my gods, shut up, Dave!” She playfully punched him. “You're starting to sound like Mayer.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Davey laughed. “I don’t see the problem with that. He’s a pretty good guy.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarah nodded. “Fair enough. But back on the topic at hand, at least the guy I like hasn’t tried committing treason against the gods, huh?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Davey’s grip on his bag tightened. “Hey, he didn’t mean to,” Davey replied. “He was just scared. That’s all.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarah raised an eyebrow. “Dave, I don’t think he was scared when he tried killing you.” She shook her head. “I will give you points because of the fact I like a good enemies to lovers story.” She smiled. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Davey looked out the window to see how far they were from their destination. “He wasn’t an enemy,” Davey insisted, feeling his shoulders tense up. “He’s just misunderstood is all. Being the son of one god is hard enough so two must be even worse. None of that was his fault.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>When he turned back to her, he noticed Sarah’s expression become one of concern. “Uh… I guess so.” She shook her head. “Anyway, what about Katherine and Race and the others? I can’t wait to hang out with them without having to fear for my life.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, that’ll be nice,” Davey said, relieved for the change of subject. “I’m just glad there won’t be some huge quest or anything like that.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarah nodded. “I know. It’ll be a nice change of pace. Especially with college coming up.” She leaned back and put her hands behind her head. “We could use a little time to ourselves.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Davey just nodded as he stared out the window. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They rode in silence the rest of the way. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Davey wasn’t sure why Sarah was so worried about the mention of Jack. Last summer they had become friends, so they got along just fine. He didn’t understand why he was such a sore subject to bring up. It was the same thing with Les too. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Well… Davey understood why Les wasn’t too keen on him but still. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He was a good guy. Davey saw no reason to be scared of him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He noticed that the bus had stopped, and they were in a familiar neighborhood. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The children of Neptune grabbed their belongings and hopped off the bus. They walked a few minutes and found the house they were looking for. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarah ran up to the front door and rang the doorbell before Davey could.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>After a moment or so, the door opened and a middle aged looking woman with curly brown hair stood in the doorway. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Mom!” Sarah exclaimed. She dropped her bag and wrapped her arms around their mother’s waist. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She wrapped her arms around her daughter with a wide grin. “I wasn’t expecting you two until later this afternoon! Come here.” She extended an arm to motion for Davey to join their hug. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Davey did so and hugged his mom with one arm. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>After she released the two of them, she opened the door wider to allow them inside. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The two demigods followed their mom inside, Davey closing the door behind them. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Their mom told them she was making lunch and that it would be ready in twenty minutes, so the two teens let themselves get comfortable in the living room. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They were greeted by an older man who was around the same age as their mom. It was their stepdad, and Les’s biological dad, Mayer Jacobs. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Their mom had gotten married when they were really little, so they had been living with him for as long as Davey could remember. In fact, Davey liked to consider him more of a dad than his actual dad, who they barely even knew. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Les came to greet them as well. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The four of them chatted for a while about what was new with school and at camp before Davey suggested they go out their bags in their room. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Davey followed Sarah to their old room with Les tailing them. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So you two are going to be gone </span>
  <em>
    <span>again</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” Les asked, jumping onto Davey’s bed. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s just for a week, Les,” Sarah said, throwing her bag onto her bed. “We’re gone all year long, you’ll hardly notice we’re gone.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Les shrugged. “I know, but you guys are usually home for spring break and summers. You were gone last summer and the spring before that already.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You can come with us if you want,” Davey offered. “We’ll see if they can let you into camp.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Les looked up at him with excitement in his eyes. “Really?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Behind Les, Sarah was shaking her head and mouthing </span>
  <em>
    <span>No</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Davey gave her a look that said </span>
  <em>
    <span>Relax, I got this. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“If you want,” Davey said, “but you’re going to have to put up with the other demigods too. And all the rowdy Greeks.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That sounds like fun! There were a few that seemed pretty nice.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And all the dangerous activities with swords and bows and arrows.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Les seemed to see what he was trying to do and smirked. “Gee, you think you can teach me to use a sword, Dave?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarah came up next to him and gave him a look that said </span>
  <em>
    <span>Let me show you how it’s done</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Jack is going to be there.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The excitement seemed to vanish. “Uh, well… actually now that I think about it, I might be busy this week.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Davey furrowed his eyebrows. “You’re ten. What could be keeping you busy?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Homework. ‘Sides, Ma and Pa probably wouldn’t want me going to a big town without adult supervision, you know?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Davey nodded. “Uh-huh… Well, it’s for the best, I guess.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Anyway,” Sarah said, “I’m done unloading. I’m going to see if mom needs any help.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She left the room. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Davey stared at her bag. “Throwing your bag on the bed is </span>
  <em>
    <span>not</span>
  </em>
  <span> unpacking!” He called to her, even though he knew he was being ignored. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Davey opened his own bag and began separating his clothes into their proper drawers. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Les swung his legs back and forth as he sat on Davey’s bed. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey, Dave?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hm?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Is Jack actually going to be at Camp Half Blood, or was Sarah just telling me that to scare me?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Davey folded one of his t-shirts. “Yeah, I think so. He’s supposed to be back by this time.” He placed the shirt in a drawer. “You don’t have to be scared of him, you know. He’s my boyfriend. He wouldn’t hurt anyone.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Les gave him a flat look. “Dave, do you even remember what happened? He literally </span>
  <em>
    <span>kidnapped </span>
  </em>
  <span>me!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s it like that anymore,” Davey said. “He wouldn’t hurt a fly. He’s changed.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Les crossed his arms. “I still don’t trust him…” He mumbled. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Davey sighed. “Well, he’s my boyfriend now, okay? I trust him completely. If you give him a chance, maybe he’ll make up—”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No way! He wanted to hurt you and Sarah! I don’t get what made you want to date him!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Because he’s not a bad guy! He was just scared and being manipulated! He didn’t do anything wrong!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He tried to kill you!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He didn’t mean to!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There was a silence that lingered in the air. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Davey hadn’t meant to raise his voice like that. He bit the inside of his cheek and felt himself tense up. He sighed. “Look, Les, I’m sorry. But people change. You’ll understand when you’re older.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Les said nothing. He shrugged. “If you say so, David.” He got up and left the room as well. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>David was left alone. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He just shook his head and finished putting his stuff away. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He laid back on his old bed and stared up at the ceiling. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>No one seemed to see what Davey saw in Jack. He wasn’t a bad guy. He changed. He was just… misunderstood. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Yeah, that’s it. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jack was just wildly misunderstood. If people just got to know him, they’d see that. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Davey didn’t have much more time to dwell on the subject because his mom called him for lunch. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Coming, Ma!” He called. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>With that, he pushed those thoughts out of his mind and joined his family. </span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Aha... this took longer than expected to write. Sorry, it’s a bit late. I’ve been feeling kinda sick, so that put off me writing this. But it’s on time! And I hope you y’all enjoyed it!</p>
<p>Anyway, take it easy guys, gals, and non-binary pals! See you next chapter!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Sarah</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Davey and Sarah get settled into CHB, but things don't go as planned.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Ahhh! My power went out last week with the cold front that hit, so it took me a while to actually start writing this chapter, so sorry for the late upload!</p><p>But anyway, yeah, SARAH POV!<br/>I love Sarah, so I was excited to write a bit for her! Also, slight warning for blood and violence, but it's only mentioned, so yeah... you have been warned.<br/>Enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Finally, they had made it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The trip wasn’t as long as the first time they had come to New York. Maybe because this time she wasn’t sitting next to Spot on the plane ride. Or it could be the simple fact that their lives weren’t in danger this time around, but who knows really. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The two children of Neptune stood outside what looked like an abandoned field. There was a sign above the broken down looking field that read </span>
  <em>
    <span>Camp Half-Blood</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sure, the outside wasn’t an incredible sight to behold, but Davey and Sarah both knew that this wasn’t all there was to it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah followed Davey up the hill, and the two walked through the entrance together. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>As expected, when they walked past the sign, the busted up old scenery burst to life. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Unkempt weeds became neatly trimmed strawberry bushes. Chipped wooden fences became freshly painted in an instant. Even the weather seemed to brighten a little. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah looked around in awe. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>This place never ceased to amaze her. Camp Jupiter was pretty great. It had a small town, free school for campers, pretty cool training areas, but all that grand, shiny new feeling didn’t have quite the same feeling as the Greeks. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Camp Half-Blood had a much more humble and comfortable feeling. It felt more like home. And all the comradery between the campers made it feel like a giant family. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah thought that was a nice feeling compared to how cold and stern Camp Jupiter felt. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She didn’t hate camp though! No, Camp Jupiter was great. That’s where her and Davey had spent most of their lives. It was practically their home away from home. It just… wasn’t for everyone. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah knew a lot of campers who loved it there. Heck, she liked it there just fine, but she liked the homely feeling of the Greek camp just a little more. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Plus, she had way more friends here than back home. Sure, she was extroverted, but being the daughter of Neptune mixed with her not being too good in social situations made things a bit difficult to make friends. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Speaking of friends…</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She spotted a certain daughter of Athena leaving what the campers called the Big House. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Katherine!” She called. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The red-haired girl had a solemn look on her face. Luckily, once she heard Sarah’s voice, she got a huge smile on her face. “Sarah! David!” She came running over to them. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah ran toward her, meeting her half way. The two girls embraced. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah wrapped her arms around the other’s waist and squeezed her tightly. Katherine laughed. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh man, it’s been months! I’ve missed you two,” Katherine said. “The Poseidon cabin’s been too quiet.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah released her. “We’ve missed you too!” She turned to her brother. “Right, Dave?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey walked up to the two girls. He gave an awkward wave. “Hey, Kath.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, David,” Katherine greeted with a small wave of her own. She raised an eyebrow. “Have you gotten taller?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah reached up and ruffled her twin brother’s hair. “It’s hard to tell since you’ve always been such a giant.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He pushed her away playfully. “Shut up.” He had a small smile on his face. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I just came back from the Big House, but I’ll head back and let Chiron know you two are here,” Katherine said. “Just make yourselves at home.” She gave them one last smile before disappearing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah glanced at her brother. “Well, you heard the woman. Let’s go put our stuff away, so we can go hang out with the others.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey nodded. Sarah noticed him looking over her shoulder and turned to see what he was looking at. There was nothing but a few campers walking by and having a conversation.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She looked back at Davey. “Looking for someone?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey blinked. “What? Uh, no,” he stuttered out.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She didn’t even know why she asked. She knew the one person he was looking forward to seeing the most. Coincidentally, it was the one person Sarah was looking to avoid the most.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She tolerated Jack enough to be around him, but she still didn’t have too much trust in him after everything that happened. She never really trusted him. From day one she got a bad vibe from him, and she had turned out to be right. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Even now, she didn’t like him too much. She did, however, trust her brother’s judgment (most of the time). If he wanted to date the son of Hades, she wasn’t going to stop him. That was his business. His business that she really didn’t want to get into, so she’d just leave it for those two to figure out on their own.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The two walked to the Poseidon cabin with a few campers stopping to greet them on their way. As they made it, Sarah was about to open the door when she heard someone scream.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“AMBUSH!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She heard Davey let out a yelp and a crashing noise before Race was thrown to the ground in front of them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She took a few steps back. “Oh my gods, are you okay?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The blonde-haired boy sat up, rubbing the back of his head. “Yup… totally fine… that was a mistake...” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey held out a hand to help him up. “Sorry, Race! You scared me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I told him that was a bad idea,” another voice said, “but he don’t listen to me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah turned to see their old praetor walking up behind them. Like Race, he was wearing an orange t-shirt that read </span>
  <em>
    <span>CHB</span>
  </em>
  <span>. The only difference was that his sleeves were ripped off while Race still had his. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah smiled. “Spot!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The shorter boy gave a nod. “What’s up?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nothing much,” Sarah said, watching Davey help Race up. “Dave took your place as praetor though. Sorry, Spottie, looks like you were replaced.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ha… don’t call me that,” Spot said. He walked over and pat Davey on the back. “Good job, Dave. I always knew ya would.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, you really didn’t,” Davey replied. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, you’re right,” Spot said with a smile. “But congrats on proving me wrong.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Uh… thanks?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Race opened the door to the cabin. “Come on let’s get you two unpacked. “He gestured inside. “Ladies first.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah entered, followed by Davey, then Race- who was reluctantly pushed in before Spot. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Race hopped on one of the bunks and bounced in place. “Nice digs ya got here. I wish the Hermes cabin had this kinda clean vibe. There’s so many of us, it’s hard to keep the place clean for two minutes.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spot was leaning against the bed frame next to Race, admiring the interior as well. “Same for the Ares cabin.” He shook his head. “I tell ya, this camp is </span>
  <em>
    <span>nothin’</span>
  </em>
  <span> like back at Camp Jupiter. No one picks up after themselves, and everyone leaves their stuff everywhere.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But you love it here with me, don’t ya?” Race said with a smirk. He scotted toward the edge of the bed and ruffled Spot’s hair.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spot chuckled. “Yeah, I do.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh yeah, speaking of that,” Davey spoke up, “how has everyone adjusted to being back together?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spot shrugged. “Well…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It sucks for some of us,” Race said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah tilted her head. “Why? What’s wrong?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Race started playing with the hem of his shirt. “Well, ya know how some of us was considered ‘bad’ for a while?” Race made air quotes when saying the word bad.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah and Davey nodded.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Some people are more forgivin’ than others,” Race explained. “Camp’s been kinda divided when it comes to some of us. Like me and Albert? We helped youse out and didn’t really do anything </span>
  <em>
    <span>too</span>
  </em>
  <span> bad, so we ain’t havin’ too much of a hard time. But people like Skittery and Morris…” He sucked in a breath of air. “People ain’t lettin’ them back in their friend circles so easy.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Morris?” Davey asked. “Isn’t that Oscar’s brother?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yup,” Race replied, popping the p. “He’s probably had it the worse. No one like him or his brother before, so ‘course they ain’t gonna like him after that stunt he pulled. And his brother ain’t here to help start fights, so…” He trailed off.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Everyone seemed to understand the implications enough for him to stop there though.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah noticed Davey seemed a lot more interested in the blankets on his bed. He looked down and fiddled with the edges of the blanket.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah still remembered it like it was yesterday. Heck, it popped up in her nightmares sometimes. She hated it so much. It made her uncomfortable.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The sword straight through the demigod’s abdomen. The blood he was coughing up. The look of pure hatred and bloodlust on her brother’s face as he went in for a second swing at his head… </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gods… she didn’t want to think about it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah was grateful Spot broke the silence. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Neither him or Race were there when it happened, so they were in the dark about the whole thing. They knew what Davey had done, but to them, it was a spur of the moment thing. Lots of people had killed or died that day. But to actually </span>
  <em>
    <span>be there</span>
  </em>
  <span> was a different story.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Can you believe people used to be scared of him?” Spot asked. “He ain’t nothin’ these days. Just some washed up demigod who thought he was a bigshot.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Race laughed. “Yup…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah glanced over at Davey and noticed his looking out a window.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Oh, here we go</span>
  </em>
  <span>, she thought. </span>
  <em>
    <span>He’s going to ask in three… two… </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, have you guys seen Jack?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>There it is.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Race shook his head. “Now that you mention it, not recently. He shoulda been here a while ago.” He stood up. “Poor guy. He’s probably bein’ held up in the Underworld for somethin’.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You think?” Davey asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Poor guy?” Sarah asked. “I think we all forget he tried to kill us.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Race crossed his arms and rolled his head to the side. “Yeah… yeah that did happen… I think he’s about learned somethin’ being stuck in that hellhole for six months. I know I woulda.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Actually he’s been stayin’ with Ma for the past week,” Spot said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Race gave him a look and flicked the back of his head. “And you’re </span>
  <em>
    <span>just</span>
  </em>
  <span> thinkin’ to say somethin’!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No one asked ‘til now!” Spot exclaimed, throwing his arms up for emphasis. “Since I’m goin’ to college nearby, I live with Ma, and Jack showed up last week lookin’ like hell-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, he just got back,” Race said with a grin.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spot shot him a look but said nothing and continued. “So, he’s been stayin’ with me and Ma for a week. He told me to go on ahead and that he’d meet me here in a while.” Spot shrugged. “And as you can see, he ain’t here yet.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is he okay?” Davey asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spot shrugged again. “Seems fine to me. He just looked sick when I left is all.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey thought for a moment. “Do you think it’d be a good idea to check on him? All of us?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah opened her mouth to speak, but Race beat her to it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You know what? That ain’t a bad idea. It might do him some good to hang out with people who actually got a pulse.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah,” Spot agreed. “If anything, he’d be real excited to see you again. We got stuff to do later today, so after lunch you should head on over there to visit him. See if he wants to come to camp ‘cause when I told him to come, he didn’t seem too convinced.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What do you think, Sarah?” Davey asked. “You want to come too?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah shook her head. “I think I’ll pass. I don’t want to be a third wheel.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, okay,” Davey said. He turned to Spot. “Just give me the address, and I’ll head out later.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spot nodded. “Welp,” he clamped his hands together,”we’ve been botherin’ you two long enough. We’ll let youse get settled in.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spot opened the door and this time Race pushed him out first. The door closed and the two siblings were left on their own.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah plopped herself down on the nearest bed and laid back. She let out a sigh. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was silence. The only noises that could be heard were the muffled voices from other campers wandering around outside and the beds creaking under them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She shifted to face her brother, who seemed deep thought. His eyes seemed to be staring at nothing. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, are you okay?” She asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He snapped from his thoughts. “Huh? Oh, I’m fine”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She raised an eyebrow. “Really? You’re going to see your boyfriend for the first time in months, and now you have a face on like you don’t want to go.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Just nerves is all,” Davey replied. “Because now, I’m starting to think… What if he didn’t want to come because he didn’t want to deal with us? Or what if he’s really sick? Or what-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“David Jacobs,” Sarah said, sitting up, “stop overthinking everything! Just go see him. Spot and Race are probably right. He’s just getting used to being around people that aren’t… well, dead.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey nodded. “Yeah… maybe…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah stood up. “I know I’m right. Now, let’s go find something to get your mind off things. Let’s see what Katherine’s up to.” She went through her things to find a change of clothes. She needed to get out of the ones she was wearing. Sweatpants and a sweater didn’t seem like the appropriate attire if they were going to be moving around.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She saw Davey do the same thing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She knew she wasn’t going to get him to calm down unless he was busy. He always seemed to need something to do or he started overthinking things, and she didn’t like seeing him in such a state of worry. Especially when it was small things he probably shouldn’t even worry about.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey stepped out to let her change and vice versa. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The two were walking along the cabins, taking in the sights and different decorations for each cabin.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey Sarah?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hm?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You sure you don’t want to come with me? It’ll be fun to kind of explore New York outside camp,” Davey said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah turned and walked backwards to face Davey. “And watch you and Jack make out in public? Bleh. No thanks.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She noticed a pink tint covering the taller boy’s cheeks. “What?! No! I just meant-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah giggled. “I’m kidding. I’m kidding. Mostly…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sarah!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She laughed harder. Sometimes it was funny to watch Davey get all riled up like that. “Kidding! But no, I’m serious. I’d rather stay-” She bumped into someone. She stopped and turned to apologize but froze when she saw who it was.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A tall, muscular boy stood in her path. He had a scar on his right eye and a mean look on his face like he was planning a felony in his head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Finally, the words found their way out of her throat. “Oh! Morris! Hi.” She gave him a small wave.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The boy said nothing. His eyes were the only thing that seemed to move. He glanced at something behind her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah looked behind her to see Davey go pale. She looked between the two boys.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sorry about that,” she said, reaching for Davey’s hand. She squeezed his hand to tell him everything was alright. “We were just going. Okay?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He let out a puff of air and walked around the two.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarah put a hand on her hip. “Wow, rude,” she muttered. “You okay, Dave?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey swallowed. “Mhm.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She looked from Morris to Davey.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Well, that was awkward. She didn’t blame Davey for that reaction. If she stabbed someone and came face to face with their brother, she’d probably have a lot of conflicting emotions too. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She squeezed Davey’s hand. “Heeey,” she said, “how about we go see Katherine now? Like, right now?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey nodded. “Um, okay…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She pulled her brother along with a sigh.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Five minutes at camp and things were already shaping up to be disastrous.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Again, sorry this chapter is a bit later than. I tried to stay on schedule, but I promise the next one will be up on time! But besides that, we’re getting into some plot! And some javid moments are soon to come too :3</p><p>Take it easy guys, gals, and non-binary pals! See you next chapter!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Sarah</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Sarah talks to a few friends and learns that things might be going on at camp...</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Another Sarah chapter cuz... I think she's neat. But yeah, more plot! Getting straight into the plot with this one, fellas. Maybe it's cuz of the different perspectives? Idk, but let's get right into this chapter!</p>
<p>Enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Thank goodness things started looking up. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarah was glad that Katherine was able to take their attention away from their… interesting welcome. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They found the daughter of Athena once again leaving the Big House. This time she held a notebook in her arms. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey guys!” She greeted. “Get settled in alright?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yup!” Sarah said cheerfully, trying to brighten her brother’s mood. “We even met up with Race and Spot for a while, right Dave?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Mm-hm,” Davey hummed. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s nice,” Katherine replied. “I’m not surprised it was both of them. Those two idiots are inseparable.” She smiled and rolled her eyes. “Anyway, did you guys need something or were you just kind of looking around?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Actually, we were looking to see what you were up to,” Sarah said. “You know, if you wanted to hang out or anything.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Katherine gave a small smile. “Man, I’d love to, but Chiron actually gave me a project to work on.” She sighed. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What kind of project?” Davey asked. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Katherine held up the notebook she was holding and used her index finger to tap the cover. “This kind. It’s something that’s kind of been going on for a while actually.” She opened the notebook and looked down at the pages. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarah moved to her right shoulder to get a better view of the pages. Davey was on her opposite side. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“There’s been these weird sort of tremors going on around camp recently,” Katherine explained. “They just kind of come and go at random and have been getting stronger. Since I did so well on our last little quest, Chiron decided to put me in charge of finding out what’s causing these tremors and how to stop them.” She flipped through a few pages that had a map of the camp and what looked to be some kind of secret entrances. “So right now, I’m just trying to figure out </span>
  <em>
    <span>how</span>
  </em>
  <span> I’m going to figure this out.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Tremors?” Davey asked. “I thought the borders of camp were supposed to keep stuff like that out.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“They are,” Katherine replied. “The borders are supposed to keep out mortals, monsters, natural disasters, and anything like that. I don’t know why this is any different.” She closed the notebook and sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. “It’s just a whole mess. What a way to spend spring break, huh?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah,” Sarah sighed. “You need any help?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I might… I was actually going to see if Jack knew anything about this since that’s more his domain, but I haven't seen him in a while.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarah glanced over at Davey and cleared her throat. Davey looked over at her, and she nodded toward Katherine. He seemed to understand.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey,” Davey said, “Spot says Jack’s over with Miss Medda. I was going to go visit him if you wanna come.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Katherine turned to him. “Really? Sure! That sounds great. Let me just get my stuff and we can go.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Wait, right now? Because I was-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, right now,” Katherine interrupted. “The sooner I can get this done, the better.” She tucked her notebook under her arm. “Meet me out front in five minutes, okay?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Uh… okay.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>With that, she was gone.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarah felt Davey shoot her a glare. She smirked and turned to look at him. “Aw, is your little date ruined?” She teased.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Just a little, yeah.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She chuckled. “Oh, don’t be like that. You’ll have plenty of time to get in his pants later, but, right now, you’re helping Katherine.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Wha- I- No!” He stuttered. “That’s not-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m kidding! I’m kidding,” she laughed. “Don’t get all huffy on me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Davey rolled his eyes. “Well as long as Kath’s coming, are you going to want to come too?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Nah, I’m fine. It was already a long enough trip, and I am </span>
  <em>
    <span>not</span>
  </em>
  <span> spending it traveling somewhere else. I’ll just stay here.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Davey shrugged. “Alright then, suit yourself.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She punched him in the arm. “Now, get out of here, idiot.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He smiled and held up his hands defensively. “Fine, fine, I’m going.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She gave him a small wave goodbye and watched as he disappeared around the corner of the Big House. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She put her hands on her hips and let out a sigh. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Welp</span>
  </em>
  <span>, she thought, </span>
  <em>
    <span>now what?</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She scanned the area for something she could do or someone she could talk to. Finally, out of the corner of her eye, she noticed the practice arena. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The daughter of Neptune shrugged. Might as well do a bit of training to help her with her swordsmanship. She always managed to beat Davey when it came to sword fighting, and she didn’t plan on losing anytime soon. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She headed over and picked out a celestial bronze sword to use. When she entered, she spotted a few familiar faces. Two of Katherine’s half brothers were dueling. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She entered slowly as she watched them maneuver around each other to avoid getting hit with the other’s sword. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>One of the boy’s was blonde and had an eyepatch covering one of his eyes. The other was shorter, had cleancut brown hair, and was wearing round glasses. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The latter turned just in time to see Sarah entering. He froze for a moment and gave a nervous smile. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He must’ve frozen a second too long because it wasn’t too long before he was knocked to the ground by the blonde boy. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The blonde laughed. “Ha! What’ve I said about letting your guard down, huh?” He tapped the ground next to him with his sword. “Focus, Darcy, or you’re gonna end up as good as dead in an actual fight.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Darcy sat up. “Oh, shut up.” He stood up and dusted himself off. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarah approached the two. “Hey, boys. Hope I’m not interrupting anything important.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The other turned to see Sarah. He smirked down at Darcy and kicked him gently. “That explains it,” he muttered. He clicked his tongue. “Anyway, what’s up, Sarah? Haven’t seen ya in a while.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Nothing much, Blink,” she said. “I’m going to be on my own for a while because Race and Spot are off doing who-knows-what, and Katherine and my brother went off to look for Jack.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh,” Kid Blink said, “that’s rough, buddy. How ‘bout you train with us? This guy can use a bit of help on his end.” He nodded toward Darcy. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I do </span>
  <em>
    <span>not</span>
  </em>
  <span>! I can beat you in a sword fight at any time.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarah giggled. “Like right now?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A light tint of pink spread across his cheeks. “N-no! Trust me, I can definitely hold my own in a fight.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know,” Sarah said with a smile. She put her free hand in the pocket of her shorts. “I’ve seen you in a fight. You’re good, but are you good enough to defeat me?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She pointed the tip of the sword at his chest. “Huh? How about it?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She scratched the back of his neck. “Well, I-I don’t know. Maybe you’re a bit too good for me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarah felt her breath catch in her throat. She lowered her sword. “You think I’m—”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey, heads up guys,” Kid Blink interrupted, lowering his voice to a whisper. He motioned for them to get closer.“We might wanna wrap this up soon cause, uh…” His one grey eyes darted from them to behind them. “Mr. No-Fun just showed up.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarah raised an eyebrow. She subtly glanced behind her to see the same boy from earlier. It was Morris Delancey. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Boy, was she glad Davey wasn’t here to freak out again. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Darcy nodded. “I guess we’ll have to train again another time. Let’s go.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah,” Kid Blink agreed. “Come on, Sarah. Sorry to cut yer practice short, but ya don’t wanna be here when he’s here.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why not?” She asked. “I’m not scared of him. I can kick his butt if he tries anything funny.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Just trust us, okay? He ain’t a fun guy to be around,” Kid Blink whispered. “Come on.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarah glanced back at the taller boy. He was a bit intimidating, but it wasn't something she couldn’t handle if he started a fight. She’d fought worse guys before.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She couldn’t do anything though because Kid Blink was already pulling her towards the exit.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Before leaving though, she noticed the boy send an odd look in their direction. She couldn’t quite put her finger on what the expression was, but it definitely wasn’t a positive one.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Once they were out of view, the three of them returned their weapons to their proper places and walked along a path that led to the beach that was at the edge of camp. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>On their way there, Kid Blink was called by this kid named Mush to help him with something. He eagerly agreed and told Sarah and Darcy on their own. He patted Darcy on the back and whispered something that made him push the blonde away. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Kid Blink just laughed and ran off to Mush’s side.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarah audibly sighed and looked away.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There was a small tug in her stomach that made her kind of wish she had gone off with her brother. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The two of them walked in awkward silence for what seemed forever. Sarah decided to finally break the silence.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So what was that all about?” She asked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hm?” Darcy responded, pushing up his glasses.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That whole ‘we need to get out of here’ thing when Morris walked in.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, nothing really. It’s just…” He shrugged. “The Delanceys have never been guys you want to hang around, even before the whole…” He made a finger gun in her direction awkwardly. “You know… Well, anyway, they’ve always been pretty bad guys. They liked picking on all of us and just bullies in general. Now, Morris has been lashing out a lot more recently, so we all just try to avoid him or stay out of his way.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarah fiddled with her ponytail. “That sucks. You’d think there’d be less trouble with just one.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah,” Darcy sighed. “But that’s just how it is, I guess. I try to stay away from those types of campers in case they cause anymore trouble.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey, Race isn’t so bad,” Sarah commented. “He helped us out in the end.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Darcy shrugged. “I suppose. Him and that Jack Kelly boy have always been strange ones.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey, don’t be talking trash about my brother’s boyfriend,” Sarah said in an over dramatic manner.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Darcy laughed nervously. “Sorry, he just is. I don’t talk to him much or know him besides who his parents are, but Katherine and him hang out a lot. Never got to know him though. He just seems odd.” He shook his head.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span> “Oh no, he totally is,” Sarah laughed. “My brother has a really weird taste in guys.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, you’re telling me.” Darcy chuckled and pushed his glasses up again. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, they have to specifically have black hair with matching eyes, be a son of Hades, be somewhat morally corrupt, and be named Jack Kelly. That about sums it up.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Darcy laughed again. “Ah, so he’s into bad boys.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yup.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Their pace slowed down as they walked side by side. It was nice out today. A cool breeze blowing, the sun was out, no clouds. It was a perfect day.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They talked a bit about other stuff. Camp, school, family- Just a variety of different things.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarah glanced at the boy next to her and smiled. “You know this is nice. We never hang out like this, there's always other people around or we get interrupted or something. You know?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He smiled. “Yeah, it’s pretty great… I mean not the last part! That’s not that great. I just meant the hanging out part. That part is great.” He shoved his hands in the pockets of his jeans. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarah laughed. “Yeah, I know.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The son of Athena turned to her. “Hey, Sarah?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You think maybe-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There was a loud sound in the distance. A loud call of a conch shell. The one that usually called campers to lunch.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarah put an index finger in the air. “And that, my dear boy, is our interruption.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, right. That.” Darcy didn’t seem too pleased either. “Let’s go.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Wait, what were you going to say?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hm?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Before the shell. You were going to say something.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, uh, it’s nothing. Nothing important.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarah narrowed her eyes but he didn’t let up. She sighed audibly. “Fine, let’s just go get lunch.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The two turned and headed for the dining pavilion.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Shhh, I forgot how I came across this ship (I think it was in a fanfic or something), but I think it's really cute. But yeah, aaaanyway, sorry if this chapter seems a bit shorter than usual, but hey, plot and stuff that's gonna be important later! </p>
<p>Hope y'all enjoyed this chapter! Take it easy guys, gals, and non-binary pals! Hop to see you next chapter!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Davey</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>In which Davey and Katherine go to visit a friend outside Camp Half-Blood. (Also perhaps a bit of javid fluff...)</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Mmmmm, not much I have to say except that I love me some javid fluff. Also, sorry for the late update. </p><p>Anyways, enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>It didn’t take as long as Davey had originally thought.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>New York was still full of twists and turns and places that were unrecognizable to Davey, but Katherine seemed to know her way around the place. Having lived there her whole life, it made sense.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There it is,” Katherine said pointing to a building down the block. “See, that wasn’t so bad.” She checked her watch. “We can get some lunch, and we’ll be back early if things run smoothly. Okay?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sounds good,” Davey said with a shrug. “The only worrying thing there is the implication that things can completely derail.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Not</span>
  <em>
    <span> completely</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Katherine responded. “But you know how he can be.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Secretive?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Obnoxious.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey chuckled. “Yeah, that sounds about right.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They walked down the busy sidewalk side by side. They had to stop at a crosswalk to let traffic pass. There were other people waiting to cross, so they had to keep their voices low when talking about the subject. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Katherine was reading something in her notebook. “It says here that the tremors haven’t caused any damage yet, so maybe it’s just something small that happened… “ She pointed downward as not to let the people around them know what they were talking about. “Kids like Jack have been known to cause some serious damage when provoked after all.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So you think Jack’s been causing it?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s just a theory,” Katherine replied. “I just hope it’s right though. If not, then I don’t know where to start with this.” He noticed her but her thumb nail. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, don’t worry about it,” Davey said, placing a hand on her shoulder. “I’m sure you’ll figure it out. You’re one of the smartest people I know.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She smiled up at him. “Thanks.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was then, the light changed, signaling that they could cross. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The two demigods walked in comfortable silence the rest of the way. Katherine led the way up to the apartment and knocked on the door. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>A minute passed, and no one answered. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Katherine knocked on the door again. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Still nothing. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>They looked at each other. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Should we be worried?” Davey asked. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As Katherine spoke, the door opened. Only, it wasn’t Medda that stood at the door. It was none other than the Prince of the Underworld himself. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Huh? Oh, hi.” Jack seemed to straighten up a bit at seeing them. “What are you twos doin’ here?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Dear gods, Spot wasn’t kidding when he said Jack looked sick. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He looked almost like a ghost. He was much paler than Davey had seen him before. He had bags under his eyes as well. His long hair was going in several different directions. He was wearing a gray sweater that looked to big for him that had one sleeve messily stitched up. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Even his demeanor was different. Rather than his usual outwardly confident posture, it looked like his body was trying to curl in on itself. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He opened his mouth to speak, but Katherine beat him to it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh my gods,” she said worriedly. She took a step towards him. “Are you okay? Spot was right. You do look like hell.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A small smirk tugged at Jack’s lips. “I just got back.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sorry to break it to you, but Race already used that joke,” she said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, now it ain’t funny,” Jack said, crossing his arms. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t worry, it wasn’t funny the first time either.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack let out a puff of air. “Good to know.” He scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. “So, uh… Medda’s ain’t here. Did you wanna…” He motioned inside. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes please,” Katherine responded. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack stepped out of the doorway to let them in. Katherine walked past him. Davey was about to enter, but Jack stopped him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, hey!” He pushed him back. “What? No kiss hello? No, hello at all?” He gave him a glare. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey felt his face grow hot. “O-oh! Sorry, I didn’t really— I just—” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>His glare quickly became a look of amusement. Jack laughed. “I’m jokin’, Dave.” He took his hand and dragged him inside. “It’s cute when you get all nervous like that.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey crossed his arms. He smirked. “That’s not fair. You make my nerves spike all the time.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack had his own smirk. “Aw, I’m flattered.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t flatter yourself too much, it’s not always in a good way.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack rolled his eyes with a smile. “Shut up.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Make me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey! Are you two going to be flirting all day because I came for here for an important reason,” Katherine interrupted. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack had a look of fake offense. “I’m not important enough of a reason to visit!” He wiped away a fake tear. “I’m hurt.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Just get over here. I need to ask you a few questions.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack sighed. “Fine.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was about to turn around to head to the living room, but Davey stopped him quickly. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He placed a gentle kiss on Jack’s forehead. “There. Now, you can’t complain.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack chuckled. “You’re such an idiot. C’mon.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He grabbed Davey’s hand and led him to the living room where Katherine was already sitting in an armchair with her notebook out. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey sat down on the couch, and Jack plopped himself down right beside him. He kicked his feet up and rested his head on Davey’s lap comfortably. Davey tensed up a bit from the sudden contact. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ask away,” he said. “I’m all ears.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Katherine cleared her throat. “Francis Sullivan—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Jack. You know my name, Kath. No need to be all formal.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She scoffed. “Fine, whatever. Jack, do you know what’s been going on at Camp Half-Blood?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey felt Jack tense up a bit. “What’s… what’s happenin’ at camp?” He asked slowly. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Chiron said there are these weird little earthquakes going on at camp,” she explained. “Since that’s more your territory, I figured you’d know something.” Her fingers clutched her notebook. “And please say you know something.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack thought for a moment. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Just ‘cause my parents run the underworld don’t mean I know every little thing about it. I don’t think I know anything?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That sounded like a question,” Davey stated. He ran a hand through Jack’s hair, only for it to get stuck in a knot. “How do you not know?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack shrugged. He closed his eyes. “I mean… that kind of crap happens when I get mad, but I don’t think it’s strong enough to reach the surface. Is it?” He glanced at Katherine. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t look at me! How am I supposed to know what you’re feeling?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You always know what’s goin’ on! You’re the smart one!” He looked up at Davey. “No offense.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“None taken. I haven’t studied much on Hades or the Underworld, so I’m at a bit of a loss here.” He removed his hand from the knot. “When was the last time you brushed your hair? It’s so messy.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Gee, thanks Davey.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Katherine rolled her eyes. “Look, I may be a daughter of Athena, but that doesn’t mean I have all the answers. I need you to think. Try to remember the last time you inadvertently used your powers. Have gotten angry lately? Scared? Any strong negative emotions? That might’ve triggered something.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack seemed to hesitate. “No.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are you sure?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Positive?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Gods, Kathy, I think I can understand my own emotions.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She raised an eyebrow. “Alright then. How about anything strange going on? Nothing out of the ordinary down in the underworld?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What is and isn’t ordinary when you’re a demigod?” Jack said matter-of-factly. “Especially when in the underworld. Actually, in life—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Jack!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Gods, I don’t know what you want me to say! I haven’t noticed nothin’! When have I paid attention to anything in my life?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She opened her mouth to answer but closed it, probably realizing he was right. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey sighed. “So… you don’t know anything?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“In general? No. ‘Bout this? Also no.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Katherine rubbed her temples. “Well, this was a waste. Now, where am I supposed to look for answers?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“ Chiron?” Jack suggested.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He’s the one who told me to help him figure this out in the first place!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, then I got nothing.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey thought for a moment. He moved a strand of hair from Jack’s face and looked down at him. “Maybe your dad knows something about waht’s going on under there. You can go talk to him-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack let out a bitter laugh. “Yeah, likes that’s gonna happen.” He sat up. “I was down there for six months. I ain’t goin’ back until I have to.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Katherine wrote something down and shut her notebook. “Alright, I guess I’ll just have to figure this out later. You guys want to get lunch? Jacobi’s is just around the corner. Then, we can head back to camp. Jack, do you want to come?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hmmm, nah.” He flopped down and rested on a pillow. “I’m stayin’ here.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You don’t want to go back to camp?” Davey asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No. I’ll go with youse to lunch, but I ain’t goin’ to camp. I ain’t in the mood to be reminded how stupid I am.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, come on, Jack,” Katherine pleaded. “We miss you. Race and the other guys miss you too.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack buried his head in the pillow and muttered something Davey couldn’t quite understand.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Katherine sighed. Davey noticed her glance over at him. He gave her a look.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She nodded in Jack’s genreal direction.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It took Davey a second to realize what she was trying to say, but he eventually got that she wanted him to convince the other boy to come back with them. He nodded.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Alright, well I’m going to wait outside,” Katherine said. “You two come out when your ready.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack lifted his head. “I am ready.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, you need to brush that digusting hair of yours,” Katherine replied. “You’re a mess.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack groaned. “Ugh! Fine!” He exclaimed extending the “i” in fine.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He stood up. “Davey, help me look for a brush.” He motioned for Davey to follow him to another room.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey did so as he watched Katherine step out of the apartment. He followed the shorter boy into a small room that he preseumed was Jack’s room. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The room had two beds. One of them had dark red sheets and was semi-clean. The other bed had light blue sheets that were just thrown on the edge of the bed as though it had been used recently. In the middle was a a nightstand  with a lamp that had a sort of wetsern design on the shade. On each side of the room where the beds were, there were completely different decorations.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>On the side with the blue bed there were a few paintings of a desert looking landscape with a few mountains in the background. There were photos tacked to the wall as well. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>On the other side of the room, the walls were almost bare except for a window and a photo of five familair demigods taped up on the wall.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey walked closer to get a closer look to see. It was an old photo of Spot, Jack, Katherine, Race, and…</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, I take it you share a room?” Davey asked, clearing his throat. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, me and Spot. It was three of us in one room, but now it’s only us two.” He knelt down and lifted his sheets. “I think there’s a brush somehere here,” he mumbled to himself.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey crossed his arms and looked around the room too anxious to touch anything. He bit the nail on his index finger as he scanned the nightstand. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You know you’re allowed to touch stuff, right?” Jack said as though reading his mind. “Just really get in there. Like this.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He walked over to Spot’s bed and tore the sheets off.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s just plaine rude,” Davey said, snickering.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s fun though. Try it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey hesitated. He grabbed one of the pillows.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“OH MY GODS! NOT THAT ONE!” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey dropped it immeadiatly and withdrew his hands. Jack laughed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m kiddin’. I’m kiddin’! You shoulda seen yer face though. Priceless.” He laughed again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey grabbed the pillow and smacked Jack in the head. “You’re not funny!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Really? I think I’m hilarious,” Jack said, still laughing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey put the pillow back in it’s place and smoothed it out. “Well, you thought wrong.” He grabbed the sheets and fixed them. “Besides, I don’t think Spot would like you messing with his stuff.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack helped him smooth out the blanket. “Relax, he won’t know. It’ll be like we was never here.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack went back to searching and finally found a brush stashed away in the closet. He tried running the brush through his hair, but pulled out a huge clump of hair.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Here, let me help you,” Davey offered, taking the hairbrush from his hand. “I used to help Sarah all the time when we were younger. Sit.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack sat down on the edge of his bed, and Davey sat next to him. He ran the brush through the nest of black hair slowly and gently.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, Jackie?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hm?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Any particular reason you don’t want to go back to Camp Half-Blood?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack crossed his arms tightly against his chest. “I just don’t feel like it,” he responded. “I’ll go back eventually. Just not now.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You ask a lotta questions, ya know that?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey tugged at Jack’s hair a little. “Yeah, but can you tell me why?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack shrugged. “It’s nothin’ really. I just… I don’t wanna hear people tellin’ me crap I already know. ‘Bout how I screw things up. What I did… No one’s gonna be happy to see me. I smell like death. I’m an outcast.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey slowed down to almost a stop. “I get it. You know, before everything that happened, Sarah and I weren’t exactly the most popular demigods. People didn’t like us because our dad had the track record of being a destructive force, so they thought we’d be the same. It sucks being the odd one out, but not everyone is going to hate you. There are some people that’ll be happy to see you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack let out a bitter laugh. “Really? Who?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Me. Katherine. Sarah, Spot, Race, and maybe a few other people. They’re your friends.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack shrugged. “I guess… I ean, maybe I’ll head back. Not today though. Tommorrow maybe?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That works.” Davey set the brush down. “There. Better?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack ran a hand through his hair. “Oh wow, that is better. It’s so soft.” He ran his hand through it a few more times. “It’s like magic.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Actually, it’s just basic hygenics but go off, I guess.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack smiled. “Thanks…” He looked down. “Hey… uh… how ‘bout we make a deal?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m listening.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll go back to camp tomorrow </span>
  <em>
    <span>if</span>
  </em>
  <span> you stay here with me tonight.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey felt his cheeks go warm. “Huh?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack looked up with a small smile. “Just for one night. Medda won’t say no. Come on, I just… honestly, I just need this.  I know it’s weird, but I just kinda need this.” He hugged himself as tough the room had suddenly gone cold.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey put an arm around him and took his hand. “Okay.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Really?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, I’ll stay here with you tonight. Then, we can head back together. Alright?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack nodded. “Yeah… thanks, Davey.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He kissed Jack’s forehead again. “Now, come on. Katherine’s waiting for us.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack nodded. He grabbed a rubberband from the nighstand and put his hair in a ponytail quickly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Davey took his hand, and they went outside to meet Katherine.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I think I'mma change my update schedule to uploading Tuesdays instead of Mondays?? It just kinda works better for me, so except the next chapter next Tuesday! Maybe... I'm not good with schedules, but hopefully I'll be able to stick to this one :D<br/>Next chapter should be another Sarah one!</p><p>Take it easy guys, gals, and non-binary pals! See you next chapter!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Sarah</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>A bit of chariot racing and Sarah/Darcy fluff.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Ahhh! I didn’t upload last week cuz I was on spring break and had a bunch of stuff to do. So here’s this chapter! I’m gonna try to stick to the upload schedule I have, but I’m not good with that sort of stuff, so we’ll see how that goes lol <br/>I really love writing for Sarah ngl. She's fun! So have a bit more of her and some Darcy too. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Enjoy! :3</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p> “Wait, you guys have chariot races here too?”</p>
<p>“Well, yeah. We just started them up again a few years ago. They were banned for a while,” Darcy explained. </p>
<p>Sarah tilted her head. “What? Why?”</p>
<p>“Oh, you know, a few deaths and several mutilations… that kind of stuff.”</p>
<p>Sarah laughed. “That’s it? Back at Camp Jupiter, people got scarred and cut all the time. You guys banned chariot racing for a few little bruises?”</p>
<p>“You guys are fine with campers dying because of a game?” Darcy shot back.</p>
<p>Sarah waved a dismissive hand. “We haven’t had a death in <em>years</em>. Last person who killed someone got punished pretty badly. A few little mutilations are nothing though. Look, I lost a toe once. Want to see?” She knelt down and began untying her laces.</p>
<p>Darcy let out a small yelp. “Gah! No, no! It’s fine! I believe you!” He looked away. “I’m not the best when it comes to that sort of stuff. It grosses me out.”</p>
<p>Sarah tied her shoelaces again and stood up. She put her hands on her hips. “Oh come on, I’ve seen you fight. You don’t get all squeamish when it comes to that.”</p>
<p>The son of Athena looked back at her. Sarah noticed how his grey eyes flashed in the sunlight. They were kind of like Katherine’s… but had a prettier sort of glow to them.</p>
<p>“I’m more of a strategist kind of guy. I’ll only fight in battle when I absolutely have to,” Darcy said. “It’s not really my style. That’s why I’m going to be the driver, and you’re the fighter.”</p>
<p>Sarah shrugged. “Fair enough. That’s usually how Davey and I did it.” She watched as a few campers gathered up weapons and prepared for the chariot races. “So, who are we up against?”</p>
<p>Darcy returned the shrug. “Don’t know yet. I don’t think we’ll figure out until we’re actually on the track.”</p>
<p>“Then how are we supposed to know how to defend ourselves?”</p>
<p>“That’s the fun part. It’ll be a surprise.” He smiled. “Hey, thanks for agreeing to be my partner.”</p>
<p>Sarah smiled back. “No problem. Dave isn't back yet, and he’s probably going to pair up with Jack anyway. I wouldn’t expect anything less.” She rolled her eyes.</p>
<p>It wouldn’t surprise her at all if that’s how things went down. Her brother was head-over-heels for that boy. It was easy to see he’d choose him over anyone else in a heartbeat. </p>
<p>Darcy’s soft laugh snapped her from her thoughts. </p>
<p>“They’re together, so that makes sense, doesn’t it?”</p>
<p>“I guess,” she sighed as she picked up a sword. “He always has this need to defend him, so I wouldn’t be surprised if he does the same if Jack ends up killing someone on the track.”</p>
<p>She felt her grip tighten on the sword’s hilt. This subject always worked her up. She didn’t know why. Something about those two just made her feel weird. </p>
<p>She felt a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Hey,” Darcy said gently, “don’t worry about it. That’s just how things can be sometimes.”</p>
<p>“Yeah, but why?” Sarah leaned her arm against the weapon. She shook her head. “Maybe it’s just me, but I don’t get what he sees in that boy.”</p>
<p>“Most relationships start out that way,” Darcy replied. “Believe me, I know. Just give him time, and he’ll start seeing the things his flaws. It’s going to happen whether either of them like it or not.”</p>
<p>Sarah raised an eyebrow. She was curious about something Darcy had said. “Wait, how would you know?”</p>
<p>A light pinkish color tinted his cheeks. “Heh… I’ve been in a relationship before.”</p>
<p>Sarah leaned closer out of curiosity. “Really?” She smirked. “Who was it?”</p>
<p>He looked away. “I… uh- Oh, hey Katherine!”</p>
<p>Sarah looked to where Darcy was looking and noticed Katherine approaching. She narrowed her eyes. “You lucked out. This isn’t over Darcy Reid. I’ll get you next time.”</p>
<p>He leaned closer with his own smirk. “I’d like to see you try.”</p>
<p>Sarah felt her cheeks start to become warm. She tried coming up with a comeback but gave up. She greeted Katherine. It took a second, but then she realized that something was missing. Well, <em>someone</em> actually. Two someones specifically. </p>
<p>“So where’s my brother and his goth boyfriend?” Sarah asked, staring behind her as though the boys would appear behind her. Sarah wouldn’t be surprised actually. Jack could shadow travel after all. It wasn’t much of a stretch to think they’d appear from thin air.</p>
<p>“Oh, yeah,” Katherine said nonchalantly. “He stayed back with Jack for the night. They said they’d be both coming tomorrow.”</p>
<p>“What?” Sarah asked. “Why would he want to stay back?”</p>
<p>Katherine shrugged. “Jack asked him to, and he said yes. It’s no big deal. It’s just a night.”</p>
<p>She sent Darcy a look that said <em>“see what I mean?”</em> and crossed her arms. “Yeah, I guess. On the bright side though, that means there’s less of a chance of someone ending up dead.”</p>
<p>Katherine chuckled. “Yeah. A son of Neptune and a son of Hades would probably be too overpowered in a chariot race. Or literally any activity, actually..”</p>
<p>“Speaking of which,” Darcy said. “We should go get ready. Our race starts in ten minutes.”</p>
<p>Sarah nodded.</p>
<p>“Good luck!” Katherine exclaimed as they headed off to find armor and weapons to prepare.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>-</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Are you sure we need all this?”</p>
<p>Sarah adjusted her armor to fit better. “It’s just going to weigh us down. If we’re going to win, we need to be quick.”</p>
<p>“Ah, but we also need to be careful,” Darcy explained, wagging a finger. “See, the rules are that there are practically no rules. All we need to do is make sure everyone’s alive as we pass the finish line. Dirty tricks are allowed, so if we’re going against Ares or Hermes or anyone really, they’re going to do whatever it takes to win. We need to be careful.”</p>
<p>“Oh, come on. I’m the daughter of Neptune. You think Dave’s the only one that has the power to manipulate water? I can handle this.”</p>
<p>Darcy smiled. “And that is why you’re the one defending us. Just keep me safe, and I’ll win this for us.”</p>
<p>Sarah gave a mock salute. “Yes sir!”</p>
<p>They arrived at the racing track and set up for the race. They had two black horses that were strapped to a silver chariot with a dark gray owl painted on the side of it. It looked like it had just been washed by how sleek and shiny it looked.</p>
<p>Darcy climbed into the front and took the reigns. Sarah climbed onto the back and held onto it.</p>
<p>“Oh look, that must be who we’re up against…” Darcy seemed to trail off.</p>
<p>Sarah looked in the direction the other was looking and felt her shoulders slump.</p>
<p>Their opponents had a black chariot with large wheel that had spikes attached to their sides. Their horses were skeleton horses that were only a little bigger than Sarah and Darcy’s.</p>
<p>The two demigods rode up and stopped right next to them at the starting line.</p>
<p>Darcy gave a polite smile that seemed forced. “Skittery. Morris. Hello there.”</p>
<p>Skittery gave a small wave. Morris didn’t even turn to look at them. His eyes were the only thing that moved as he glanced at them for a second.</p>
<p>
  <em>Well this is going to be… interesting. </em>
</p>
<p>A few more teams rode up to the staring line as well. There were three other teams to be exact. It was Kid Blink and Mush, Specs and Romeo, and Spot and Race.</p>
<p>Sarah gave them a small wave to which they returned.</p>
<p>“Good luck! See ya at the finish line!” Race called.</p>
<p>“Not if we get there first!” Sarah called back.</p>
<p>It wasn’t long until a boy’s voice called out for the teams to get ready. “Alright,” the voice said, “you all know the rules. Two laps around the track. Anything goes. But let’s not let things get too outta hand. On your mark—”</p>
<p>Sarah held on tightly to the sides as not to fall off.</p>
<p>“Get set—”</p>
<p>Darcy gave Sarah one last look. Sarah smiled and nodded.</p>
<p>
  <em>“Go!”</em>
</p>
<p>Within two seconds, everyone was off.</p>
<p>Sarah had to hold on extra tight. She knew these things were fast, but she had forgotten how fast.</p>
<p>“You good back there?” Darcy asked, not taking his eyes off the track.</p>
<p>“Uh-huh. Just a little caught off guard was all.”</p>
<p>“Alright, well, hold on! We’re about to pass our first team!”</p>
<p>Sarah looked up ahead and noticed there were three other teams ahead of them. Just ahead were Spot and Race.</p>
<p>Sarah grabbed a a sword and prepared for a fight. She wasn’t sure what was considered “playing dirty” at Camp Half-Blood. Back at Camp Jupiter, they had certain rules to prevent any serious injuries. People still got seriously injured and her and Davey had the scars to prove it. Sarah was curious what they considered dirty here.</p>
<p>They caught up to the son of Hermes and Ares. Race was the one driving while Spot was behind him.</p>
<p>“Hello boys, how’s it going?”</p>
<p>Spot turned to her. “It’s goin’. We ain’t last, right? Better than I excepted.”</p>
<p>“Oh, that’s nice.”</p>
<p>“Hey! Quit the chitchat and use that fire I packed!” Race called.</p>
<p>Spot grabbed a small green vial from his pocket. “Sorry, hon. No hard feelings.” He launched the vial straight toward her.</p>
<p>Sarah quickly grabbed her shield and blocked the vial. It exploded right on impact.</p>
<p>Their chariot shook at the small explosion. Darcy had to steady the horses to keep them on track.</p>
<p>Sarah looked down at the weapons they had packed. She picked up a small dagger and looked back up at the other two. “Hmm…” She had an idea.</p>
<p>Spot launched another vial of Greek fire, which Sarah blocked again with her shield.</p>
<p>She aimed and threw the dagger towards one of the reigns Race was holding. She was a teeny tiny bit off with her aim though.</p>
<p>Instead of completely cutting the reign, it grazed the boy’s arm. Race flinched.</p>
<p>“Ah! What’re ya aimin’ at me for?!”</p>
<p>“Sorry!”</p>
<p>She blocked  another vial of Greek fire.</p>
<p>They passed up a river and Sarah got another idea. She extended her hand and watched as a small stream of water burst upward. She motioned toward Spot and Race’s chariot.</p>
<p>It hit Spot right in the face, knocking him back. He said something to Race, and he nodded. They steered closer. Spot raised his sword. Sarah raised hers ready to fight, but Spot wasn’t aiming for her.</p>
<p>“See you twos later.” He shoved his sword right in their wheel, causing them to lurch to a sudden stop.</p>
<p>“Whoa!” Sarah yelped as she fell forward onto her partner. Darcy pulled the them to a full halt. They both flew forward, hitting the front of the chariot.</p>
<p>She could hear the two of them laughing as they rode off.</p>
<p>Sarah felt her face heat up. She got off the other quickly. “Are you okay?”</p>
<p>Darcy’s face was completely red. “I-I’m fine! Just get that thing out, s-so we don’t fall too far behind.”</p>
<p>Sarah did as instructed and fumbled to removed Spot’s sword from the wheel. They were off again.</p>
<p>Sarah realized they were pretty far behind and probably wouldn’t be able to make first. By the time they made their first lap, her and Darcy were still in fourth place. Well… on the bright side, they weren’t last.</p>
<p>That place went to Morris and Skittery, who seemed to be arguing a majority of the race.</p>
<p>They were right on their tail though, so Sarah was ready for anything they threw at them.</p>
<p>What she wasn’t ready for was for what happened next.</p>
<p>The two had finally stopped arguing and seemed to have a plan. Skittery maneuvered them to be right next to them. They hit Darcy and Sarah’s chariot, causing Sarah to lunge forward. The spikes on their wheels didn’t help either.</p>
<p>Sarah grabbed her sword and tried to to emulate what Spot had done but was completely thrown off when another body jumped onto their chariot.</p>
<p>Morris Delancey had hopped over to their chariot and was now standing over her.</p>
<p>“Hey! That’s not fair!” Sarah exclaimed. She tried to punch him, but he caught her fist.</p>
<p>“Sorry, girly, but nothin’s fair ‘round here. Anything goes,” he replied.</p>
<p>Darcy glanced back for a second. “We really need to get new rules,” he mumbled.</p>
<p>The chariot was only built for two, so it began slowing down with the extra weight added on.</p>
<p>Sarah kicked the taller boy’s shins. It had no effect. She tried reaching for her sword, but he was way too strong for Sarah to escape his grip. The other chariot got ahead of them.</p>
<p>Morris smirked. “Oh no, you’re getting behind. What’re you gonna do about it, daughter of Neptune?” He raised an eyebrow.</p>
<p>Sarah growled. They passed up the lake again. She knew exactly what she was going to do.</p>
<p>She willed a larger stream of water than the one she used on Spot and willed it toward Morris.</p>
<p>It shot right into his face and he let go of her. She willed it to stay on his face for a minute longer. Then, she whacked him in the knees with her shield and threw him off the moving vehicle.</p>
<p>He flew off and landed face first into the grass.</p>
<p>“Well done, Sarah!” Darcy exclaimed. “We might just be able to make fourth place after all!”</p>
<p>They managed to pass up Skittery and cross the finish line just after Kid Blink and Mush, who somehow went from first to third in the span of a few minutes.</p>
<p>Darcy pulled them to a gentle halt. He laughed. “Well, we may not have gotten first, but that was the best race I’ve ever been in. You were great!”</p>
<p>Sarah smiled. She ran a hand through her hair and laughed nervously. “R-really? Thanks.”</p>
<p>Race ran up to them. He had a huge grin on his face. “Haha! Told youse we’d see ya at the finish line! First place! They don’t call me Racetrack for nothin’!”  He pumped his fists in the air.</p>
<p>Sarah laughed. “Congratulations! You two did great.”</p>
<p>Spot came up to them, holding onto one arm. He smiled. “Good race, fellas.”</p>
<p>“Are you alright, Spot?” Sarah asked.</p>
<p>Spot shrugged. “Yeah, I’m good. I think I just dislocated my elbow. It’s nothin’ though. At least I wasn’t hurt as bad as Delancey over there.”</p>
<p>Sarah tilted her head and turned it to see Morris still laying face down.</p>
<p>He wasn’t moving.</p>
<p>Sarah felt something sink in the pit of her stomach. “Oh gods…” She hopped off the chariot and threw her armor aside. Before Darcy could ask what was wrong, she rushed back to where she’d knocked Morris off his own chariot.</p>
<p>It was a spur of the moment decision. Sure, she didn’t like a single bone in Morris’s body and his attitude sucked, but she didn’t want him <em>dead</em>.</p>
<p>Mildly injured? Sure. Not dead though! She couldn’t stand having that on her conscious. She prayed to her dad she hadn’t accidentally drowned him or a busted skull or any kind of fatal injury.</p>
<p>Sarah knelt next his body. She turned him on his side and tapped him gently. “Hey… Hey! Morris?”</p>
<p>It took a moment, but the taller boy groaned softly and coughed.</p>
<p>“Oh, thank gods!” Sarah sighed with relief. “Are you okay?”</p>
<p>He opened his eyes slowly and stared up at her. “What are you doin’?” His voice came out scratchy and weak.</p>
<p>“Asking a question. You got an answer?”</p>
<p>He pulled away from her grip and sat up. He narrowed his eyes. “What’s it to ya? What? Did you wanna finish me off the way your brother did to mine?”</p>
<p>Sarah scoffed. She stood up. “Dude, you fell off a moving chariot and almost drowned. I just want to know if you’re hurt.” She held out a hand to help him up.</p>
<p>He scrunched up his face in disgust and swatted her hand away. “Why?” He stood up. “That’s stupid. You wanna finish me off, don’t ya? Stupid Roman.”</p>
<p>Sarah rolled her eyes. She didn’t feel like arguing right now. “Whatever. I was just trying to be nice to you for once.” She crossed her arms and turned to walked away. “What a jerk,” she mumbled under her breath.</p>
<p>She didn’t know what she expected.</p>
<p>That boy’s attitude stunk. Always has. Always will.</p>
<p>“Look, I’m fine. Okay?” Morris’s voice said reluctantly. “It’s nothin’ too serious.”</p>
<p>Sarah was a bit surprised that he answered. She also could’ve sworn she heard him mumble something along the lines of “thanks for asking”. She looked back and noticed that he was already leaving.</p>
<p>That was… odd.</p>
<p>She shrugged and headed back to Darcy to celebrate her Spot and Race’s victory with the others.</p>
<p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>It's my fanfiction and I get to choose the rarepair-<br/>But anyway, yeah, I feel like this story is a bit slower paced than the last one. It's not gonna have stakes as high as the last one and it's more character focused, so that's probably why. Things SHOULD start picking up soon tho. I promise just wait til we get to chapter ten. I got stuff planned for that chapter.</p>
<p>With that said, take it easy guys, gals, and non-binary pals! See you next chapter!</p>
        </blockquote><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hope y'all enjoyed that little chapter! I kinda wanted to show a bit of background and how Jack got tangled up in the whole Kronos thing cuz plot reasons. Next chapter will hopefully be up soon!<br/>Take it easy, guys, gals, and non-binary pals! Thanks for reading! Hope you see you next chapter!</p></blockquote></div></div>
</body>
</html>